The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of more than 1,000 researchers at universities around the world, J-PAL conducts randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty.
The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of more than 1,000 researchers at universities around the world, J-PAL conducts randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty.
Our affiliated professors are based at over 120 universities and conduct randomized evaluations around the world to design, evaluate, and improve programs and policies aimed at reducing poverty. They set their own research agendas, raise funds to support their evaluations, and work with J-PAL staff on research, policy outreach, and training.
Our Board of Directors, which is composed of J-PAL affiliated professors and senior management, provides overall strategic guidance to J-PAL, our sector programs, and regional offices.
J-PAL recognizes that there is a lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the field of economics and in our field of work. Read about what actions we are taking to address this.
We host events around the world and online to share results and policy lessons from randomized evaluations, to build new partnerships between researchers and practitioners, and to train organizations on how to design and conduct randomized evaluations, and use evidence from impact evaluations.
Browse news articles about J-PAL and our affiliated professors, read our press releases and monthly global and research newsletters, and connect with us for media inquiries.
Based at leading universities around the world, our experts are economists who use randomized evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty. Connect with us for all media inquiries and we'll help you find the right person to shed insight on your story.
J-PAL is based at MIT in Cambridge, MA and has seven regional offices at leading universities in Africa, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, North America, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.
J-PAL is based at MIT in Cambridge, MA and has seven regional offices at leading universities in Africa, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, North America, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.
Our global office is based at the Department of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It serves as the head office for our network of seven independent regional offices.
Led by affiliated professors, J-PAL sectors guide our research and policy work by conducting literature reviews; by managing research initiatives that promote the rigorous evaluation of innovative interventions by affiliates; and by summarizing findings and lessons from randomized evaluations and producing cost-effectiveness analyses to help inform relevant policy debates.
Led by affiliated professors, J-PAL sectors guide our research and policy work by conducting literature reviews; by managing research initiatives that promote the rigorous evaluation of innovative interventions by affiliates; and by summarizing findings and lessons from randomized evaluations and producing cost-effectiveness analyses to help inform relevant policy debates.
How do policies affecting private sector firms impact productivity gaps between higher-income and lower-income countries? How do firms’ own policies impact economic growth and worker welfare?
How can we identify effective policies and programs in low- and middle-income countries that provide financial assistance to low-income families, insuring against shocks and breaking poverty traps?
Can contact between people with different attributes and political opinions decrease discrimination in the job market? To answer this question, this project will consist of two large-scale interventions in order to measure the effects of encouraging...
Transparency policies have been implemented worldwide to promote pay equity. These policies aim to increase workers' knowledge of wages within their firm, which can impact wage negotiations, as well as their knowledge of wages at other firms, which can...
Can mentorship programs improve vulnerable women’s attitudes toward job search and early career prospects? To answer these questions, this project will run a randomized controlled trial to evaluate a tailored online one-to-one mentorship program targeted at...
Alagoas – AL; Bahia – BA; Ceará – CE; Maranhão – MA; Paraíba – PB; Pernambuco – PE; Piauí – PI; Rio Grande do Norte – RN; Sergipe – SE
Type:
Pilot project
In Brazil, small and micro-entrepreneurs play a pivotal role in generating income and jobs. However, they encounter various barriers to business growth, including low adoption of productivity-enhancing technologies and exclusion from the formal economy. This...
Acre – AC; Bahia – BA; Mato Grosso do Sul – MS; Rio de Janeiro – RJ; Rio Grande do Sul – RS; São Paulo – SP
Type:
Full project
This project addresses the challenge of integrating soft skills into Technical Vocational and Education Training (TVET) programs to improve youth employability and labor market matching in industrial occupations. In partnership with SENAI, Brazil's largest...
Meritocratic procedures may attract more qualified candidates, but they might also overlook important interpersonal skills. This project aims to understand the underlying mechanisms that make meritocratic selection systems more effective, considering selection...
Women perform more unpaid domestic labour than men, including care work for children. This unequal division of labour in the household contributes to lower female participation in the labour market and the gender earnings gap. Economists have primarily...
This project examines the labor supply of gig workers in Brazil using iFood as a case study. The study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the factors determining the labor supply of gig economy workers and will enable policymakers to enhance the...
This large-scale research project aims to evaluate the Novotec program and the impacts of integrating technical and vocational education into the high school curriculum within the context of the state of São Paulo. Through the collection of administrative data...
Pernambuco - PE, Rio de Janeiro - RJ, São Paulo - SP
Type:
Full project
This project aims to investigate whether short programming courses can effectively equip disadvantaged young workers with the necessary skills for successful employment. Program participants will undergo 300 to 400 hours of training in technical skills and...
Stigma is a mark associated with negative characteristics, which leads to discrimination. Stigma can be especially damaging in the labor market since it can psychologically affect labor suppliers. To slum dwellers, home address is a stigma. The research team...
Minas Gerais – MG; Rio de Janeiro – RJ; São Paulo – SP
Type:
Project development grant
Recent research has demonstrated that soft-skills training increases wages and firm productivity. It also shows that employers value reliable signals of a worker's non-cognitive abilities. For these initiatives to scale, several questions remain. The study...
Bahia – BA; Rio Grande do Sul – RS; Santa Catarina – SC
Type:
Full project
Work-related safety concerns are high in emerging economies and limited governmental resources are scarce to make sure firms comply with the rules in place. The research team measures the impact of traditional safety visits by work inspectors and compares it...
Export promotion agencies worldwide spend heavily on interventions to induce domestic firms to start exporting. However, the literature lacks a proper evaluation of the efficacy of such programs. In this project, the research team assesses whether providing...
Despite growing evidence on the economic impacts of major natural disasters such as hurricanes or earthquakes, there is still a dearth of evidence in the literature on "day-to-day" natural shocks such as harsher seasonal flooding. As climate change intensifies...
About 70% of domestic workers in Brazil have less than a high school education, their work is still largely informal with low wages, and they often face abuses from employers, such as inflexible and unpaid work hours. The objective of this project is to...
The goal of this project is to understand frictions affecting the effectiveness of job training programs for low-income women in Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city in Brazil. We are particularly interested in promoting solutions at low cost that can...